


That Luthor Girl Needs Love

by WellOkThen



Category: Supergirl (TV 2015)
Genre: Alex Danvers & Lena Luthor Friendship, Alex Ships It, F/F, Fluff and Angst, Lena Luthor & Winn Schott Jr. Friendship, Lena Luthor Finds Out Kara Danvers is Supergirl, More fluff than angst, Pink Kryptonite, Slow Burn, Slow Burn Kara Danvers/Lena Luthor, SuperCorp
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-06-14
Updated: 2017-07-10
Packaged: 2018-11-14 05:31:56
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 13,344
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11201472
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WellOkThen/pseuds/WellOkThen
Summary: Alex Danvers had spent the majority of her adult life preparing for unpredictable situations. She had faced down hundreds of threats, had saved her city, her country, her world more times than she could count, but nothing prepared her for the conversation she was about to have.Or, how after Alex had to tell Lena Luther that her sister was Supergirl, she found herself plotting how to get the Super and the Luthor together.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first fic - honestly I never thought I would ever write a fic but I couldn't get this idea out of my head.

“Alex Danvers to see you, Ms. Luthor.”

“Send her in Jess, thank you.”

Lena Luthor ran her fingers through her long black hair - she wore it down today because she was supposed to have lunch with her best friend and Kara said she liked it when Lena wore her hair down. “You look more relaxed with it down,” she said. “Less like Lena Luthor, scary badass CEO, and more like…” Kara blushed here, Lena remembered vividly, “more like my Lena.” 

Lena was supposed to have lunch with Kara Danvers and yet it was the older Danvers walking through her door. 

“Agent Danvers, what can I do for you?”

Alex Danvers had spent the majority of her adult life preparing for unpredictable situations. She had faced down hundreds of threats, had saved her city, her country, her world more times than she could count, but nothing could have prepared her for the conversation she was about to have. 

“You can call me Alex, Ms. Luthor. Umm…I…” Alex breathed a heavy sigh. Her eyes glanced around the room, hoping that somehow the walls or decorations held the script for what she needed to say. She hadn’t been this lost for words since coming out to Kara. The irony of the situation was not lost on her.

Lena was startled at the informality and the stuttering. Lena felt like she knew the auburn haired woman in front her better than she had any right to. Kara had spent hours talking about Alex – she knew about her being recruited to the FBI (though after the incident with the Daxamites, she know it was actually the DEO). She knew about her coming out and dating Maggie Sawyer. She knew that she had a secret romantic side, loved binge watching sci-fi shows and political dramas with Kara. All in all, Lena knew that the woman in front of her was the single most important person to Kara.

But she also knew that Alex Danvers was not the type to stutter. That was a Kara thing. 

“Then please call me Lena. And I hope this doesn’t sound rude, but you weren’t the Danvers I was expecting to see today.” An alarming thought stuck Lena and the words escaped her mouth just as quickly, “Oh God, is Kara okay?!” Gone was her cool Luthor exterior. Even without being present, Kara Danvers broke down Lena’s walls. 

This outburst brought Alex back to the moment. “Oh! She’s fine. Well, sort of. She’s not in danger. She’s… sick.” 

Lena’s heart rate began to normalize as she breathed a sigh of relief. “Ok, but something tells me you didn’t come all this way to tell me she was going to miss lunch.” 

Alex finally found herself looking at the younger Luthor. She was slightly taken aback at how young the CEO looked. She was beautiful of course, but there was a kindness to her green eyes that she imagined most people who entered this office didn’t get to see. She had a small smile and an expectant look on her face. 

“No, but now that you mention it, she won’t be making lunch today.”

“Well for Kara to miss a meal, it must be something big,” Lena replied. Alex smiled for the first time in two days. She had spent hours listening to Kara effuse about how smart, and funny, and good Lena Luthor was. Having only had passing conversations with the woman in the past, she didn’t quite see it. She rarely trusted new people in general, but a Luthor who took such an interest in her sister was cause for at lease a little concern. But today, here in the L Corp office, Alex finally saw the Lena that her sister had always described. 

Lena could tell that there was something up, but knew that if Kara were in any real danger, Alex would have come in, guns blazing, barking orders to help her sister. Right now, she just looked stressed. “Alex, you look like you need a drink,” Lena said.

Alex maybe fell a little in love with Lena for just a moment. “Lena, you have no idea.”

Lena grinned and walked over to the minibar she had set up for times like these. She desperately wanted to make a good impression on Kara’s sister, and just as she was sure that the way to Kara’s heart was through her stomach, the way to Alex’s heart was through her liver. Pouring a healthy amount of whiskey into two glasses and handing one to Alex, she said “have a seat on the couch, enjoy this, and give me five minutes to settle some business and then you will have my undivided attention for as long as you need it.”

Alex felt significantly calmer than she had since she walked through the door, but she hadn’t yet even begun to reveal anything. She took a sip of the whiskey and gasped – it was, without a doubt, the best whiskey she had ever tasted. She watched and listened as Lena called her assistant in. 

“Jess, how many meetings do I have today and tomorrow?” 

“Only one this afternoon and then four tomorrow.” 

“Cancel them all. Also, I think L Corp is due for a long weekend, so have HR send out a memo allowing all non-essential personnel to take the afternoon and tomorrow off, and all essential personnel will be given holiday pay. Any questions?” 

“No ma’am.” 

“Good. Also, please send a note downstairs adding Alex Danvers to the list of people who are to be shown in right away.” 

“Oh! Okay! Does that mean…” 

Lena smiled indulgently, “It means nothing more than that I wouldn’t want to waste the good agent’s time in the future.”

Jess smiled back, “ Sure. Sure. Anything else, Lena?” 

Alex noted the change in moniker. 

“Kara and I won’t be needing our reservation at Caro Mio, so please call them and change the reservation to your name. I believe they have my credit card information so please enjoy a nice lunch with that lab tech boyfriend of yours on me.” 

“Thank you. Have a nice weekend, Lena.” 

“You too Jess.” Lena finished typing out an email and then closed her laptop. She could see that Alex was intrigued by her interaction with her assistant and simply raised an eyebrow.

“Did you seriously just close down a multi-billion dollar company for a long weekend? How much does that cost?”

“Probably about a quarter million dollars.” Alex’s mouth hung open. “But I save a lot of money by retaining top talent. My employees enjoy a good work-life balance and I like to surprise them a few times a year with a day off. I was planning skip day for a couple weeks from now – Kara and I had been talking about going to the beach for a day after the latest copy of Catco came out.” 

“When does your assistant call you Lena and not Ms. Luthor?”

Lena was impressed at the agent’s attention to detail. “Jess has been my personal and professional assistant for about five years – we’re very close. So she calls me Lena when it’s just the two of us or in front of people who are on the list I just added you to. Friends and family, I suppose you would call it.”

“How many people are that list?”

Lena walked over to the mini bar where she had left her glass of whiskey. She took a quick sip, looking a little bashful. “Well, now there’s two.” 

Alex didn’t know quite what to make of this. She knew how to read people, knew when they were lying. And she had no doubt that Lena was being absolutely truthful. She just didn’t know why yet. 

“What did she think adding me to that list meant?” 

Lena took a long sip of her whiskey, considering her words. “Nothing important. You still haven’t told me why you’re here, though.” Lena couldn’t stop thinking about what was going on with Kara, but she knew that answering these questions would hopefully lead to Alex trusting her. She wanted, needed Kara’s sister to trust her. At the same time, she could tell the agent needed a mental break from whatever it was that brought her here today.

Alex could tell Lena was deflecting her last question but decided not to push it. “One last question first: where did you get this whiskey? It’s delicious!”

Lena smiled proudly. “Oh, it’s from a small distillery I own.”

Alex was surprised. In all of her research on the Luthor organization or the Luthor herself, there had been nothing about a distillery. “I wasn’t aware that L Corp invested in anything but science and technology.” 

“Oh, I mean literally, I, Lena Luthor, own the distillery. Most people don’t know this, but I am independently wealthy outside of my family money.” 

“How? And why don’t I know about it?” 

“Well, I use my birth mother’s last name for that money and those investments. I like to invest in a lot of small businesses, mostly women run. I try to keep the Luthor name away from them since, well, I don’t want them to be boycotted for an unfair association. I usually use Jess as my intermediary for them. For example, this whiskey was made by a small business in Tennessee, run by two queer women. The distillery was hit by a hurricane and their insurance wouldn’t cover it. So I became a silent partner, fixing the damage and I own 50%. They’ve really done amazing things, they started out with about 10 employees and now have over 150.”

“You seem really proud of them.”

“It was the first business I invested in with my own money.”

“Right, so how do you have so much money on your own?” 

Lena took a deep breath. “Alex, you have to promise me you won’t tell Kara about this. I mean, I’ll tell her, but she doesn’t know yet.” 

To say Alex was intrigued was an understatement. “I promise.”

“I was a model.” 

Alex choked on her whiskey. “What?!” she sputtered out. “How is that not common knowledge?”

Lena smiled again, “Well I had a moderate amount of success but it was mostly in Europe and Asia. I used a fake name and no one would really believe that a Luthor would do anything but you know, focus on world domination. I made a fair amount of money, and then just invested well.” 

Alex finished her glass, then nodded as Lena offered her a refill. “Well, I must say, I never thought I would learn this much about you, Lena.” 

Lena glanced at Alex while grabbing the decanter of whiskey from the bar. Alex could tell she was more than a little uncomfortable with being this open. 

“Okay Alex, I’ve answered your questions, so please, please tell me what’s going on with Kara.” 

Alex took a breath, and looked right into Lena’s pleading eyes. 

“Lena, Kara is Supergirl. And she needs your help.”


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I can't really believe how quickly this is getting written! Thanks for the kind words and kudos. I have no idea how long this is going to be, but it's going to take at least another couple chapters before Lena and Kara even interact.

“Lena, Kara is Supergirl and she needs your help.”

Alex had anticipated a few ways that Lena might react. She was hoping for shock – that would mean that Lena didn’t know already. Laughter or relief would be fine. But if there was one thing she was learning about the younger Luthor, it was that she was unpredictable. She wasn’t expecting suspicion. 

“Why are you the one telling me this?”

“Seriously?” 

“Yes. That is no one’s information but Kara’s to share, so again, why are you the one telling me this?” The soft, smiling Lena that Alex had seen until now had disappeared – this was the CEO. 

“Because I had no choice. So you knew already?”

“Yes.” 

Alex considered the woman opposite her for a moment, watching as she sat down on the couch again and refilled their glasses. “How long have you known?”

“I can’t tell you that,” Lena responded darkly. 

“And why the hell not?” If Lena had switched gears and become the CEO, Alex just as quickly became the DEO agent. Her rough tone seemed to shake Lena. 

“I just realized how that sounded,” Lena suddenly chuckled. “Kara says that sometimes I talk in Luthor voice, where I say things in a way that sounds unnecessarily mysterious or menacing. What I mean is, I can’t tell you how long I’ve known because I’m not entirely sure. It’s rather like when I finally realized I was queer – I couldn’t tell if it was something I’ve always known and denied or if it actually was a new realization about myself. I think part of me knew from the first time she saved me. But I’ve actively known for over two months.”

“You’re a lesbian?! Does Kara know that?!” Alex blurted. 

“That’s what you got from that?” Lena said, raising an eyebrow, relieved that her accidental Luthorness hadn’t turned the agent against her. “Yes, I’m queer. And I believe Kara knows although she may not since the only relationship I’ve discussed with her was one I had was with a man.” 

Alex knew that Lena was referring to Jack; Kara was crushed that she couldn’t protect Lena better, that Lena had to kill her onetime love to save Kara’s life. “You should have seen her, Alex. She’s devastated. I don’t know if she’ll ever love anyone the way she loved Jack.” Alex couldn’t believe how blind she was then. 

“Why wouldn’t you tell her you know about Supergirl?” 

“Again, it’s Kara’s identity to share with who she wants. And I’m sure she had her reasons for not telling me. My family history. Some misguided idea about keeping me safe. But I think most of all, and I doubt she would ever admit this, but I think she wanted to be a little selfish when it comes to me.” 

Alex bristled at this. “Kara isn’t selfish.” 

“You’re absolutely right. She is the most giving, altruistic person on this planet. But let me ask you this: Do you have strong feelings on Justin Timberlake and Britney Spears?”

“I don’t have strong feelings on them. Or any feelings at all.”

“Well I do. And so does Kara. But being the youngest CEO of a Fortune 500 company doesn’t lead to a ton of people who want to talk pop culture with me. Or if they do, they’re usually trying to prove that I’m too young and immature to hold this position. And I think anyone who knows that Kara is Supergirl suddenly only wants to or sometimes only can talk about Supergirl. I think part of her liked having someone to talk about silly things with. And I’m more than happy to be that person for her. I would do anything for her.” 

Alex was again taken aback at Lena’s honesty. She had always seemed so closed off, so dedicated to the CEO mask she wore. 

“Now it’s my turn for a question, Alex. I need to know why you’re outing your sister to me. That’s what this feels like and I don’t like it. Kara deserves for her privacy to be respected. So why did you have no choice but to tell me?”

Alex was impressed. Few people rivaled her level of protectiveness when it came to her sister, but the woman sipping whiskey next to her might give her a run for her money. 

“Well, you know that Kara is nearly indestructible on this planet, right?”

“Yes, except for kryptonite.” 

“Correct. Well we’re learning that there are many forms of kryptonite and they all affect Kara differently. The worst is the green, which can actually harm or kill her. Max Lord…” 

“Ugh” Lena interjected, seemingly on instinct. Alex liked her a little more. 

“Exactly. He accidentally developed red kryptonite, which lowers her inhibitions and, well, brings out the worst in her. And yesterday evening, we found pink kryptonite.”

“And what does pink kryptonite do?” 

“Well…” Alex paused. If Lena was upset about Alex’s revealing Kara as Supergirl, she probably wasn’t going to take to kindly to this next revelation. “If Kara were 100% straight, pink kryptonite would simply make her very, very gay.” 

Lena perked up at this. “So you’re saying she’s not 100% straight?”

“That’s what you got from that?” Alex said with a small smile.

Lena narrowed her eyes and smirked, “Well played. Please continue.” 

“No, she’s…never really put a label on it but I’d say bisexual. And the pink kryptonite has had the effect of making her very focused.” 

“Focused on what exactly?”

Alex took another sip of whiskey to buy some time. Telling Lena about Kara being Supergirl was one thing, but telling her about her about Kara’s crush was another. Alex heard her phone buzz in her bag, but she ignored it. 

“Focused on you, Lena. She has a huge crush on you. And the pink kryptonite has made it so that all she can think about is telling you, and doing other things which a sister should never hear her sister say she wants to do. But that’s why I’m telling you all this. You are so important to her, and she would never forgive herself if she was under the influence of anything when she told you about her feelings. She really likes you, Lena.” 

Lena took a deep breath. She could feel the tears welling up in her eyes, so she took a long sip of whiskey, taking a moment to collect herself. She never thought she’d be having this conversation with Kara’s sister, but honesty had gotten her this far. 

“Yeah, I know that too,” Lena said, sadly. 

Alex, for what felt like the millionth time since walking into the CEO’s office, was shocked at this reaction. “You know that too,” she repeated. “How?”

Lena gave a sad smile, “I’m a genius, remember?”

Alex’s stomach plummeted. She had read Lena wrong – everything up to now indicated that the Luthor loved her sister. How was she going to break it to Kara? “So, you don’t like her too?”

Lena finished her whiskey, then looked Alex square in the eyes and said, “I am madly, desperately in love with Kara. She is the best thing that has ever happened to me. She makes me happier than anyone ever has. She makes me feel safe. I used to want to do well in business, but she makes me want to do good. I love her more than I ever thought it was possible to love a person.” 

Alex was more confused than ever. “So I tell you she likes you, you tell me you love her, so why do you look so sad?” Alex took the liberty of refilling their glasses. 

“Alex, am I right in thinking that you know a lot about me despite the fact that this is the first real conversation we’ve had? Either through background checks, or surveillance, or probably mostly because of things Kara has told you about me?”

Alex nodded. 

“Then it shouldn’t shock you to learn that I know a lot about you too. Kara can’t help herself sometimes, she talks about the people she loves. So I know about you and Maggie. I know how devastated you were when she rejected you at first.”

“Kara told you about that?!” Alex didn’t know how to feel about this. Although given that she had just revealed a lot about Kara to Lena, she figured she could let it go.

“Yes, but only because she wanted to help you. She is unaccustomed to feeling helpless so she wanted to talk to someone about it.” Lena lit up for a second, “Yes! She does know I’m queer, I told her in that conversation!” Then seemingly remembering what they were discussing, her face turned dour again. “Sorry, that was going to bother me. Anyways, am I right in thinking that was one of the lowest points of your life?”

Alex looked into her whiskey glass. She remembered spending hours looking at a glass just like it after Maggie turned her down. How humiliated, how alone she felt. And then Kara forced her way in, held her while she cried. 

“Yes, Lena, it was awful.”

“But then Kara came to help you get through it, right? She kept showing up, doing things to cheer you up, to remind you that life goes on?”

Alex gave a little smile. As protective as she was of Kara, it was one of the times that she remembered just how protective Kara was of her. 

“And then she brought over your friends, and brought you out to the bar, and just reminded you that you weren’t alone.”

“Wow you really do know a lot.” 

“Yes. Alex, I don’t have anyone else in my life like Kara. I don’t have friends. And I know she likes me, I know she has a crush on me. She is the most obvious person in the world. If she were a man, I’d probably be insulted by how many conversations she has had with my boobs. But I love her in the way that I’d probably buy her a ring after our first date. She could ask me to sell this company to her for a dollar and I’d do it. That’s no way to enter a relationship, with the balance so far off. I’d put too much pressure on it. And I just couldn’t date her if all she was interested in was exploring her feelings for me. I would want a real relationship with her. So for now, I’m simply going to be the best friend I can be to her. She deserves that. A lot of people want to protect her from getting too close to me, but I’m the only one who knows how true that is.”

Lena sighed loudly. She had had this conversation with herself over and over. She knew it was the right choice. She wanted Kara in her life and this was the best way to make sure it was long term. 

Alex couldn’t believe what she was hearing. Any one who met Kara fell in love with her. But usually they fell in love with her and it turned them selfish. They always wanted more from Kara. When she was their friend, they wanted to be her best friend. When she was their best friend, they wanted her to be their girlfriend. And when Kara didn’t have more to offer, they held it against her. They took advantage of her kindness and made her feel bad for their feelings. They always wanted more. 

And yet, here was Lena Luthor, refusing to accept more because she loved Kara so much. 

“Well, you may be a genius, but you’re also an idiot,” Alex said finally. 

Lena tilted her head back and let out a loud, unrestrained laugh. “Oh, this is the laugh that Kara’s always talking about,” Alex thought. Then her phone buzzed in her bag again. Alex grabbed it and saw that it was Maggie calling.

“Give me a sec, Lena. I’ve got to take this.” 

Alex walked out of the office before answering. 

“Hey babe, we found Kara and the kryptonite has worn off. She’s back to normal.”

“Oh thank God.”

“So, how’s it going with Little Luthor? Is she still mad at me for arresting her? Did she know? Who won the bet?”

Even after all these months, Maggie’s voice still made Alex smile. “It’s going well. The arrest hasn’t come up. She knew. I need to ask a follow up question to figure out who won the bet. And Maggie?”

“Yeah?”

Alex checked over her shoulder to make sure Lena couldn’t hear her.

“I can’t believe I’m saying this, but we’re going to have to get Lena Luthor and my sister together."


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't know that much about the science of kryptonite, so this may not be canon but just go with it please. Thanks again for the comments and kudos! 
> 
> *When I first posted this, I accidentally posted the text twice, but that's been fixed, so hopefully it's not still showing up twice!

“I can’t believe I’m saying this, but we’re going to have to get Lena Luthor and my sister together.” 

“What?!” Maggie Sawyer was not often shocked by her girlfriend anymore. Even though they both faced the unpredictable every day in their jobs, they were always in tune with one another. And if there was one constant that she could always count on, it was that Alex Danvers had one compelling mission in life: protecting her little sister. So to hear her say that she wanted to set up her sister with Lena Luthor – well, that was shocking.

“I know!” Alex responded. “Well, actually, I need to see how Kara really feels about her without the pink kryptonite, because, and again, I cannot believe these words are coming out of my mouth, but I would be pissed at Kara if she broke Lena’s heart.” Alex couldn’t keep the surprise out of her voice.

“What the hell happened in the last two hours, Danvers?” Maggie laughed.

“You know how we’ve been talking about adopting a puppy?”

“Yeah?”

“Well, we’re adopting Lena first. I’ll tell you all about it later. I need to finish up here. Where’s Kara?”

“She’s heading back to her apartment, J’onn told her to take the next few days off.” 

“Okay. Okay.” Alex’s mind was racing, a plan coming together. “I’m going to go over to Kara’s. Meet me there after you get out of work.” 

“Sounds good. I’ll bring pizza.”

“I love you, babe.”

“I love you too. Text me if…”

“Wait! I just thought of something – can you call Winn and ask him to come over too?” 

“Yeah, sure. Should I call James too? Make it a full Superfriends meeting?” 

“I can’t believe Winn convinced you to call us that too. And not yet for James. He’s got more of a history with the Luthors and Lena doesn’t need anyone judging her for her last name. We’ll bring him in later.” 

“You have a whole plan ready, don’t you?”

“I came out to Kara and kissed you in one day. I move quickly.” 

“Damn right you do. Okay, see you around 6.”

Alex hung up her phone and took a deep breath. She turned around to look at the younger Luthor through her glass office doors. Lena was staring head, holding her glass of whiskey halfway to her mouth, as though she started to take a drink but then was too lost in thought to finish.

Lena was replaying her conversation with Alex in her mind. She had revealed parts of herself that she had never spoken aloud. She knew why it was necessary, but it still made her deeply uncomfortable. She allowed herself a small bit of hope (2% - she was allowed 2% of hope) that she would one day have more with Kara and earning her sister’s trust was absolutely necessary. She startled when Alex walked back in. 

“Hey sorry about that. We found Kara and she’s back to normal.”

“Wait, you mean she’s been missing this whole time?!” 

“Yeah, she got out of our hands this morning and then texted me that she was planning a big romantic gesture for you. That’s what I was going to ask for your help with – I was going to ask you to avoid her at all costs.”

“I see.” 

Alex reached over to her bag and pulled out a non-disclosure agreement. “I’m going to need you to sign this, now that you officially know.”

“What are you going to tell Kara?”

Alex’s heart melted a little at the vulnerable look in Lena’s eyes. They really were startlingly green. “I’m going to tell her that you know about her being Supergirl and that I told you that she was under the influence an alien substance and that’s why she had to miss lunch.” 

“And nothing else?”

“No, the rest of it is for you to tell her. Especially the model thing – that’s going to blow her mind.”

Lena chuckled a little at this. She read over the NDA – it was pretty much what she was expecting. Forfeiture of all freedoms upon revealing any information about the identity of Supergirl or her work with the DEO.

Lena signed it and handed it back to Alex. She was starting to feel the whiskeys she had drunk so far. “Well, I’m glad Kara’s back to normal, but I think I may have something that will help her should she be hit by pink kryptonite, or any other types.” 

Alex could see a glimmer of excitement take over the Luthor’s face. Lena stood up and walked over to her desk. She pulled out a sheet of paper from her top drawer and handed it to Alex. “I’m going to need you to sign this, first.”

“Seriously, an NDA?”

Lena smirked. “I want to take you to my personal lab and show you some things.”

Alex read through the NDA, expecting to find some strong financial penalties. She had to admit that she was impressed with what was there instead.

“This isn’t your regular NDA, is it?”

“No, Alex, that one I wrote just for you.”

“So you didn’t expect me to tell you about Supergirl, but you did have an NDA already drawn up for me?”

“I knew eventually Kara would tell me, whether it would take months or years even. And one thing she is always talking about is what an amazing scientific mind you have. I’ve been working on some things to help Supergirl even before I knew she was Kara. But ever since I knew it was Kara, I wanted to have you look at my work and hopefully work with me on it. But I don’t want the DEO to know about everything, especially my testing methods, hence your NDA.”

“Which if I understand correctly, if I reveal anything to the DEO that you haven’t approved, the NDA that you just signed is then nullified and you’d be free to tell anyone anything.” 

“I have to admit, I thought that was pretty clever.” Lena smirked again. 

Alex took a minute to consider. J’onn would probably have her ass for doing anything to compromise the DEO, but she could only hear Kara’s voice shouting in her head, “Lena is trustworthy!” And everything she learned today said that was true. So she took the pen that Lena had just used and signed.

“Thank you, Alex.” Lena said earnestly. Lena picked up Alex’s NDA, walked over to her sideboard, and pulled open a large drawer. Alex assumed that Lena was simply filing it, but then heard the unmistakable sound of a shredder. 

“What the hell?!”

Lena turned to her, looking bashful of all things. “I needed you to sign that so you understood how important my research is to me. I hope that you’ll still abide by it, but I can’t hold something over your head like that. Not when I need something from you.” 

“What on earth do you need from me?”

“I need you to trust me. You know how I feel about Kara, that I would never hurt her, that I would do anything to help her. But if you don’t trust me, if you put seeds of doubt about me in her head, it would ruin our whole relationship. Because she needs you Alex, and so I need you too.” 

Suddenly it all made sense to Alex. This is why Lena was so open with her. She wanted to make a good impression. This gave Alex hope that maybe Lena wasn’t completely closed off to the idea of a romantic relationship with Kara as she said earlier. This made her plan a little easier. 

“I don’t know if I completely trusted you when I walked in, but I do now.” Alex looked directly into Lena’s eyes then, trying to convey her newfound trust and affection for her. “But do me a favor, and let’s keep the fact that I signed that NDA to ourselves. It might get me trouble with my boss.” 

Lena smiled radiantly. “Of course. Now let’s head to the lab. I’m really excited to show you what I’ve been working on.”

Alex followed Lena back to the elevators, watching as several employees said hello and thanked Lena for the long weekend. Lena smiled back, greeting each person by name. Alex was expecting for Lena to push the down button, but instead pushed the up button. 

“Aren’t we on the top floor?”

“No, there are three floors above us,” Lena said, walking into the open elevator door. Alex followed, confused. She looked at the buttons and saw that there were no buttons for any floors higher than the one they were on. Lena then opened a panel on the side wall of elevator, placed her hand against a sensor, and the elevator started moving.

“What are on the top three floors?” Alex asked.

“The top two floors are my penthouse, and here,” Lena said as the doors opened, “is my lab.” 

“Oh my God…” Alex worked in one of the most high tech laboratories in the world but even she had to admit, this lab was amazing. 

Lena beamed as she watched the DEO agent take in her lab. “This is honestly my pride and joy. I have come to love being a CEO, but being a scientist was always my calling.” 

“I’m impressed, Luthor. So show me what you’ve been working on.” 

“Follow me,” Lena started walking to the far end of the labs, where Alex saw a huge vault door. Lena opened a similar panel to the one in the elevator. She pressed her hand up to the sensor, then moved over to a retinal scan. Alex saw a green “Access granted” alert flash and heard a series of locks begin to disengage. 

Meanwhile, Lena was punching buttons on the security sensors. “Alex, come here, I need you to put your hand up here and do the retinal scan. If the room senses more than just me without adding you, the whole floor will self destruct.” 

Alex quickly followed Lena’s instructions to gain entrance. “Why all the extra security for this room?”

“Well, all the research that I do out here” Lena indicated the rest of the lab with a wave of her hand, “uses only human technology. In here, I’ve been working on some alien technologies. I found a lot of Lex’s old notes on Kryptonians and have been working to repurpose them, so rather than killing Kara and Superman, I can help them. The security is in case my family tries to get at this research.”

“And you said that you had a way to protect Kara from any form of kryptonite.” 

“Sort of. Krypton had a red sun, which offered a different type of radiation than our yellow sun. The yellow sun’s radiation is what gives Kara her powers but also what gives kryptonite its’ power. Lex’s notes included some information on creating a red sun lamp, which would take away the kryptonians’ powers on earth.”

“Yeah, we know about red sun lamps, but how would that help Kara?” 

“Because they only work in places with a complete absence of yellow sun radiation. If the two types of radiation were in the same place, the yellow sun radiation would be over power the red sun radiation. It’s part of why Lex didn’t do more with the red sun lamps –getting Superman to a completely sunless room wouldn’t allow for the public humiliation that Lex wanted. Plus, he probably loved the drama of bringing Superman down with kryptonite. “

“So you’ve been working on a red sun lamp?” 

“Not just any red sun lamp. One that works congruently with our yellow sun.” Lena walked over to a light switch a flicked it on. A set of what looked like fluorescent lights glowed a soft pink. “These lights would allow Kara to live more like a human. They would decrease her powers, but still allow her to absorb the yellow sun radiation. I developed them with her apartment in mind. She wouldn’t break as many appliances, and she wouldn’t need to eat so much.” 

“Wait, what?!” Alex couldn’t believe what she was hearing. Kara’s food budget was astronomical.

Lena chuckled at this. “Yes, see she needs to eat so much because she uses up so much energy. With these lights, she would be able to regenerate her energy without needing as much fuel. Also, her strength would be lowered enough so that she wouldn’t have to hold back as much physically with other people as she does now.” Alex noticed a blush creep up Lena’s neck at this. She decided to move right past this.

“This is amazing, Lena. But how have you been testing this if not on Kara? You said the DEO wouldn’t approve.” 

Lena knew this was the moment of truth. If she was going to lose Alex’s trust, this would be the reason why.

“I’ve been trying it on green kryptonite. I disposed of most of the kryptonite that Lex had left but kept a small amount to research. I’ve also been working on some fabric for Kara’s suit that would work as a kryptonite neutralizer. I needed it for these lights because it responds similarly to red sun radiation as Kara would, according to Lex’s notes. It’s not a perfect substitution but…”

“It’s okay, Lena. That’s actually really smart.” Alex interrupted Lena’s rambling, seeing how concerned she was about admitting she had any kryptonite. Lena breathed a huge sigh of relief.

“Well, I’ve been able to develop these lights to neutralize green kryptonite, and it shouldn’t take too much work to neutralize any other colors as well. And I’d love your help on it.” 

Alex smiled at Lena’s meek expression – she could tell the black haired woman was not used to asking for help, and probably less used to receiving it. 

“I’d love to, Lena. But I should probably head out. Kara’s home and she’s probably pretty stressed out.” 

“Of course, Alex. Tell her to call me if she needs anything.”

“I will. Speaking of which,” Alex pulled out her phone and handed it to Lena, “put your number in.” 

Lena took the phone and entered her number. Alex then sent her a text. “There, now you have my number, so Lena, if you need anything, you can call me.” Lena gave a small smile at this. 

They turned to head back towards the elevators when a thought struck Alex.

“Oh, you have to settle a bet for me. Did you figure out that Kara was Supergirl because glasses are a terrible disguise or because she slipped up and said something she shouldn’t have?”

“Hmm I mean both are true, but I’d have to say what really settled it for me was when she referenced something I told Supergirl.”

“Yes!”

“Was that the right answer?” Lena chuckled.

“Well, it means I won a bet with my girlfriend. So yes.” Alex turned to face Lena. “I’m really glad we got to talk today. And I have a feeling we’ll be seeing a lot more of each other soon.”

Lena didn’t know how to respond to this kindness so simply replied, “I hope so.” She watched as Alex entered the elevator. She couldn’t help but think how lucky Kara was to have a sister like that. 

Alex couldn’t stop thinking about the afternoon she just had as she exited the building and got into a cab to Kara’s. Nothing went the way she expected, but it was somehow much better. She hadn’t felt such a sense of protectiveness so instantly towards a person since Kara was adopted. Anyone who thought that Lena Luthor had an evil bone in her body had clearly never talked to her. Here was a woman who spent her sparse spare time working on making Kara’s life better and safer. 

The cab came to an abrupt stop in front of Kara’s apartment building, shaking Alex from her reverie. 

Alex hadn’t even reached Kara’s door when the blonde opened it with a worried expression. 

“So how did Lena take it?”  



	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter includes some stuff about Kara/Mon-El - I'm trying to stay pretty canon compliant, and that includes the way Kara was shown to feel about Mon-El, which was that she did care about him, so I wanted to honor that.
> 
> Again, thanks so much for reading!

Alex hadn’t even reached Kara’s door when the blonde opened it with a worried expression. 

“So how did Lena take it?” 

Alex wordlessly walked into Kara’s apartment, put down her bag, and enveloped her sister into a hug. Even though Kara wasn’t physically hurt like she would be with green kryptonite, or emotionally damaged like she was with red kryptonite, the whole episode had taken a toll on both of the sisters. 

Finally, Alex pulled back from the hug and held Kara’s head in her hands. “I’m glad you’re back to normal, but I think we have some things to talk about. You know why I had to tell her, right?” 

Kara sighed and walked over to sit on a stool at her kitchen island. “Yeah, I know. I should have told her myself a long time ago. I should have told her after she stopped the Medusa virus. Or after she saved me instead of Jack. Or after she stopped the Daxamites. I just… I couldn’t.”

Alex began making tea for them. “Why not?”

“I wasn’t ready for anything to change. She’s the first new friend I’ve made since I became Supergirl and…”

“You wanted someone who would just be friends with Kara,” Alex finished, remembering what Lena had said earlier. 

“Exactly. And…well, it was nice to be friends with someone without some weird romantic tension. We were just friends. We are just friends,” Kara said, glancing up at her sister. She didn’t quite know where Alex stood on her friendship with the younger Luthor. 

Alex pulled down two mugs and dropped tea bags in. She wanted to tread lightly, realizing that Kara hadn’t decided to tell her about her crush on Lena of her own volition. Lena’s reaction to the Supergirl revelation had struck a chord with Alex. She didn’t want to force her sister into talking more about her feelings if she wasn’t ready. “Look Kara, I just spent two hours with Lena and I have to tell you: I think she’s great. She cares about you so much, she’s funny, she’s a genius. I think she’s got a lot of love to give and she needs a lot of love too. Honestly, I think it would be hard not to fall in love with her. I mean, if I wasn’t with Maggie, I’d probably have a crush on her.” 

“But you are with Maggie,” Kara said almost threateningly. She felt a surge of protectiveness and jealousy at even the thought of Alex having feelings for her Lena. 

“Whoa, whoa, calm down Supergirl. I’m very happy with who I’m with and I’d never dream of moving in on your woman.” Alex held up her hand to stop her sister from interrupting, and continued, “I just mean that I can see why you would develop less than platonic feelings for her. I’m just curious how much of what you told me was the pink kryptonite and how much was how you really feel?” Alex turned to pick up the whistling tea kettle off of the stove and poured water into the two mugs. Handing a mug to Kara, she headed to couch, saying “I love you, and I want you to know you can always talk to me about this. But also, just because pink kryptonite you said some things, we don’t have have to talk about it if you’re not ready.”

The two sisters sat on the couch, and to both of their embarrassment, they both were thinking about the more graphic language Kara had used while under the pink kryptonite. 

“Well, I certainly would have used more tact when telling you about my feelings for Lena,” Kara said. Alex and Kara looked at each other and burst into laugher, out of nerves more than anything. 

“I didn’t even know you knew some of those words!” Alex said, catching her breath. She looked fondly at her little sister. “So you do like her as more than just a friend then?”

Kara felt a wave a relief take over her – she had wanted to talk to her sister about this for so long, but she didn’t think she could handle it if Alex didn’t approve of Lena. “Honestly, Alex, I’ve loved Lena for a long time as my friend, so it’s more than just liking her. But every time I talk to her or spend time with her, or even just text with her, I fall in love with her a little bit more. At least I think that’s what this feeling is – I think I’m in love with her.”

“You think, but you don’t know?”

“I know I’ve never felt like this before.”

“Not even with Mon-El?” Alex and Kara hadn’t talked much about the ending of Kara’s relationship with the Daxamite prince. Kara had said at the time that there wasn’t a choice between saving the world or saving her boyfriend. 

“No.” Kara sighed.

“So you didn’t love him?”

“No, I did love him. He made me laugh and he didn’t take things too seriously. And he wanted to be with me, and with you and Maggie in your honeymoon period, and Winn and James doing Guardian things, him just wanting to be with me was an attractive quality. And he was a jerk to me sometimes but I think I overlooked that because it meant he wasn’t intimidated by my power, which a lot of guys are. But I think more than anything, he made me feel safe.”

“How so?”

“I knew he loved me. I mean, I knew he loved me far more than I would ever love him. I knew if, for whatever reason, our relationship ended, it wouldn’t destroy me. And with what we do every day, that seemed like a great thing for a relationship. I knew I would be okay without him. It was a safe relationship. He once said that I was his kryptonite, so I guess I thought knowing I wouldn’t get hurt made me strong. But falling in love with Lena has shown me how wrong I was.”

Kara took a sip of her tea, gathering her thoughts. “I would be destroyed without Lena in my life. Even if nothing romantic ever happens between us, I need her. But I guess I always thought that loving someone that much would be scary. But it’s not. Loving her makes me stronger. I feel more confident, happy…like everything that was good before is just better. And I think we could be so great together. Unless you’re just keeping me talking to put off telling me that she hates me now because I lied to her about Supergirl….”

Alex put her mug down on the coffee table to turned to face her sister completely. “I don’t think it’s physically possible for Lena Luthor to hate you. And she already knew.”

“What?!” Kara cried out while completely crushing the mug in her hand. She super sped to get paper towels to start mopping up the tea. “How did she know? And she’s okay with it?”

Alex laughed at her sister’s shock – she would never tire of Kara’s naïve belief in her own sneakiness. She also realized that the sooner they could get Lena’s red sun lamps installed, the better. 

“Well, like I said, like you’ve told me several times, she’s a genius. And you, my darling sister, need to keep better track of which conversations you have as Supergirl and which ones are Kara Danvers.” 

Kara smiled dopily while moving to throw out the remnants of her mug. “She really is a genius, isn’t she?”

Alex had seen her sister with crushes before, she had seen her when it appeared she was lovestruck by Mon-El, but this deeply in love with her best friend version of Kara was completely new. And Alex loved it. 

“She is. She’s been working on some things in her lab to help you that are really amazing.”

“Like what?” Kara asked excitedly. 

“That’s for Lena to tell you.” 

“Fine,” Kara pouted. She sat back down opposite Alex, looking suddenly nervous again. “What did you tell her about the pink kryptonite?”

“I told her you were under the influence of an alien substance and that she might need to avoid you. You woke up from it while I was there, so she knows you’re back to normal.”

“That’s good. I’m sorry I put you in that position.” 

“So you remember begging me to tell her that you’re Supergirl? Why was that so important to you?”

“Yeah, I remember. Pink kryptonite made everything I feel in relation to Lena extremely urgent. So there was a part of me that really wanted you to trust and like Lena before I got struck, but under the influence, it seemed like the most important thing in the world. So I figured that if you told her I was Supergirl and needed her help, you would see how much she loved me too and you’d have no choice but to trust her and then give us your blessing. What’s so funny?” 

Alex had started laughing – she couldn’t believe that everything pink kryptonite Kara had wanted to happen had actually come to pass. “Well, I do trust and like her now, and it’s because I had to tell her you were Supergirl. Which I wasn’t going to do when you were begging me, I just told you I would because I was hoping to buy enough time for you to wake up. Maybe we should have just shot you in the leg with a kryptonite bullet like J’onn suggested.”

“J’onn wanted to shoot me?!”

“He didn’t want to shoot you. We were kind of at a loss for what to do. You weren’t really a danger to anyone, you were just hell bent on sweeping Lena off her feet…and then do other things to her.” Alex smirked at how quickly Kara turned bright red. 

“Okay, if we could just never mention that again, thank you,” Kara mumbled as her head dropped to her hands. Alex laughed again, then picked up her tea again to take a sip. 

Kara held head in her hands for another minute. She was elated that she could open up to her sister, but she still needed to ask the question she had been thinking about since Alex told her how much Lena cared about her. “Alex?” she said, lifting up her head to look her sister in the eye. “Do you think Lena might like me too? I mean, like the way I like her?”

Alex took a long sip of tea, thinking fast. She knew she was going to have to navigate the next portion of the conversation carefully because she didn’t want to lie to her sister, but she didn’t want to betray Lena’s trust either.

“Well, sis, she did say some things that lead me to believe that yes, she does harbor some romantic feelings for you.”

“Really?! Like what?!”

“I’m not going to tell you that. In fact, right now I’m calling in the favor that you agreed to when I said that I’d tell Lena you were Supergirl.”

“I never agreed to a favor.”

“It’s retroactive from right now.” 

Kara narrowed her eyes – she knew she owed her sister for doing what she had been too afraid to, but owing Alex a favor was sometimes worse than losing a bet to her. “Fine. What’s the favor?”

Alex put down her tea and took Kara’s hands in hers. “I think you and Lena will be an amazing couple. I think you’ll be perfect together. But to get together, you’re going to have to make the first move. And the favor is, I want you to promise me that you won’t make a move until I give you permission.”

Kara didn’t know how to feel about this – on the one hand, she was ecstatic that Alex was rooting for them, but on the other hand, she wasn’t sure about leaving the biggest romantic decision of her life so far up to her sister. “Why?”

“Because right now, you are her only consistent source of love and kindness and affection. You’re her only friend. I mean, most people are exaggerating about stuff like that, but she’s not. You said that losing her would destroy you, but you’d still have me, and Maggie, and Winn, James, J’onn, Mom…you’d still have people who love you. She doesn’t have that.”

Kara took this in – Lena had said before that Kara was her only friend, but there was something different about hearing Alex say it. Her heart ached for her friend and she just wanted to wrap her up in her arms and tell her how loved she was. “So why can’t I make a move until you say so?”

“Because you may not be under the influence of pink kryptonite anymore, but you do have love goggles on, so I’m asking you to trust me that when the time is right for you and Lena, I’ll tell you. Promise me?”

Kara thought about this for a second. Today, Alex told Lena she was Supergirl to protect their relationship, so it seemed like this promise was just an extension of that. And everything Alex said so far showed that she really was looking out for both of them. “Okay, Alex, I promise.” 

Alex leaned over to hug her sister again. “Thank you. I’m happy you two have each other. And I have a plan.” 

Kara leaned back, wiping away a tear she didn’t realize had spring in her eye. “What kind of a plan?”

At that moment, Maggie walked in with Winn behind her holding five pizzas. “Dinner’s here!” 

“Right on time!” Alex said, walking to the refrigerator to pull out beers for the humans in the room and a sparkling water for the kryptonian. 

“I didn’t realize I was having people over, Alex” Kara said, clearly confused.

“They’re a part of the plan. Hey babe,” Alex leaned over to kiss her girlfriend. Maggie smiled into their kiss, then reached up to grab plates. 

They walked back to the couches while Winn dropped the pizza boxes on the coffee table. “I don’t remember agreeing to be a part of a plan,” he said, hand outstretched to accept a beer. Alex held the beer back and stared him down. “Boy, that came out wrong. I meant, I’m very excited to hear the details of this plan I’ve enthusiastically agreed to be a part of.” 

“That’s better,” Alex said, handing him his beer. She sat down between Maggie and Kara, and smiled. Kara and Winn both looked excited and confused.

“I’m glad everyone could be here, it’s been a long day, but I think it’s also the beginning of an exciting new project.”

“Does this project have a name? Can I come up with the name?” Winn asked, practically jumping out of his seat.

“Sure. But the gist of it is this…” Alex said, looking at each person.

“The Superfriends are going to woo Lena Luthor.”


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 1\. Sorry this took a bit - at first I was having trouble getting through this chapter, then I had to move, then I literally erased what I wrote and started over and I like this version better. 
> 
> 2\. I changed the rating for this fic - it's more of a heads up for some chapters I have planned for later on. I thought about waiting until the fic warranted it but then I thought I wouldn't want to have anyone get too invested if a more mature fic isn't your thing. 
> 
> 3\. Thanks for reading, kudos, and comments!

“The Superfriends are going to woo Lena Luthor.”

Alex looked around the room and was met with pleasantly perplexed faces. She addressed each one by one, “Winn, you’ve already worked with her, so you know she’s a genius. We’re going to help her with some Supergirl related projects she’s been working on in her private lab. I think we can all be awesome science partners. Maggie, she has amazing taste in whiskey and when we first met her, she shot Metallo while he had me in a choke hold and managed to hit him and miss me, so I have a feeling you two could have some fun at the gun range. And Kara, you’re her best friend and in love with her so I’m guessing you’re on board. That just leaves James, but we all outvote him and I’m sure once he gets to know her better, he’ll look past the Luthor thing and be happy to have another CEO to talk to. Any questions?” 

Kara and Maggie raised their hands while Winn grabbed more pizza. Alex was more than a little surprised at this – “Winn, you’re on board? That easy?”

“You’re telling me that you want me to be friends with a genius billionaire and work on cutting edge science projects with her and both you and Kara say she’s cool? It’s not really a hard sell. Plus we have the crazy murderous relative thing in common, so yeah, I’m in. Also, I’m glad you’re finally on board with calling us the Superfriends.” 

“That was related to my question,” Maggie chimed in. “You literally made fun of me for saying Superfriends not 5 hours ago.”

“Babe, that’s not a question.”

“Okay, here’s my question: how dare you?” Maggie smiled and winked at her girlfriend, already planning on ways to make her pay for being rude. 

Alex chuckled while shaking her head, then turned to look at her sister. Kara looked in equal measure thrilled and embarrassed. She remembered most of her pink kryptonite experience but didn’t realize how many people were around at the DEO when she was professing her love.

“Exactly how many people know about my… feelings for Lena?” Kara asked, blushing more than she wanted to. 

Maggie and Winn both held up their hands, while Alex added, “Plus J’onn, Vasquez, Henderson, O’Reilly…maybe a couple other agents who had morning duty. You were…kind of shouting at me at the DEO when you wanted me to go talk to her, and it took a bit of convincing to get you to a secure room.”

“And everyone’s okay with it?”

Alex smiled and put her arm around her sister, replying, “It wasn’t exactly a surprise. Every time you talked about her, you’d light up. You found ways to bring her up in conversations that were not at all relevant to her. Looking back, I think I was just refusing to see what is now very clear, especially since this one,” Alex pointed a thumb at Maggie, “kept insisting that you two were…involved…”

“Banging,” Maggie leaned forward and said with a shit eating grin, “I said you were banging.”

Kara and Alex both put their faces in their hands in the sort of synchronized response only found in siblings. Kara asked again, “But really, everyone’s okay with this?”

Winn piped in, “Kara, we want you to be happy. And if Lena makes you happy, then that’s great. And if she is untrustworthy, wouldn’t it be easier for us to figure that out if we’re friends with her? Plus I really want to work on projects with her when there isn’t a robbery or world ending invasion going on.” 

Kara laughed and smiled at this. For a while now, she had wanted to introduce Lena to her friends, to make her a part of the group, but there was also a part of her that wanted to keep Lena to herself. But now, seeing her friends, her family getting excited about bring Lena in, she was excited for Lena to see what friendship was really like, not fake friendship based on status or money, but based on common interests and laughter, friendship based on love. 

“Okay, Danvers,” Maggie sat forward and rubbed her hands together, ready to hear the plan her girlfriend had mapped out, “you’ve assembled your team, what’s next?”

Alex stood up and faced her crew. She looked at Kara first, “You are overdue for a conversation with Lena about you being Supergirl. So you’re going to invite her over for lunch tomorrow and do what us queer ladies do best: process your feelings. But no…” Alex gave a pointed look to her sister. That was all she needed to do to remind Kara of her promise. “I know,” Kara responded, leaving Maggie and Winn looking perplexed.

“Good. Sometime tomorrow, you are going to invite her over to Maggie’s and my place for movie night on Saturday,” Alex turned to her girlfriend, “Babe, we’re having a movie night on Saturday.”

Maggie laughed, “Oh good to know!”

Winn was beginning to feel left out – after all, he had already spent time with the younger Luthor working on the black field generator and the lead dispersion device. “Well what about me?!”

Alex turned to him and said placatingly, “At movie night, I’m going to make plans for you and I to spend Sunday working in her lab. Unless your girlfriend is going to have a problem with us taking up your entire Sunday?”

Winn suddenly looked downcast. “Well, since we’re all being honest about romantic feelings, you all should know that Lyra broke up with me.”

Everyone visibly deflated at this. Kara went over and gave Winn a hug, saying, “I’m so sorry. I had no idea. Are you okay?”

“Yeah, yeah, I’m doing better now. It actually happened a couple weeks ago, I just didn’t know when to tell everyone. James knows, and he’s been great about making plans to keep my mind off it. It sucks, but it’s okay.”

Maggie walked up to him, handing him and Alex fresh beers, and said, “I’m sorry, man. If you want to go to the gun range or need a wingman, let me know.”

“Thanks, Maggie. Actually, I’m excited about this whole Lena project, better name TBD. It’ll be nice to finally have another genius in the group,” Winn smiled, seeing Alex bristle at the implication. 

Alex decided to let Winn’s broken heart have that one dig, but that was it. She sat down next to Maggie again and picked up the remote. She turned on a movie on Netflix and they spent the rest of the evening eating pizza and popcorn. Since Maggie had picked up Winn from the DEO, the three of them left together. 

As they pulled away from Kara’s building, Alex turned around in the passenger’s seat to face Winn. “Do you want to talk about it?”

It had taken Winn a while to figure out his relationship with Alex. She was always needling him, but fiercely protective of him at the same time. It all came together for him after the Daxamites took over the DEO – he didn’t know how he was going to get out until Alex shouted at him to leave and then took off and leaped off a balcony. He realized that she did that to draw fire away from him so that he could make a break for it. She knew Kara would catch her, but it remained that she was willing to sacrifice herself for him. He realized that had never had a sister, and Alex had never had a brother. After Winn realized that, all of the times Alex made fun of him made sense – she was just picking on her little brother.

Winn smiled at his big sis, as he called Alex in his mind, and replied, “Yeah, in retrospect, it was never going to work out between me and Lyra. She said I always kept her at arm’s length, that even though I tried to bring her in to the Guardian team, she always felt like a guest. And she never felt like she fit in with the Superfriends, and I started to not invite her to things, like it felt weird when she came to game nights. And when she got mad, she’d be so explosive that I would be tying myself into knots trying to avoid upsetting her.”

“Yeah, that’s not healthy,” Maggie said. “I wanted you two to work, because you both clearly liked each other, but it just felt off, you know?”

“Yeah, I just want something like you two have – like Alex couldn’t wait to bring you into the group when you started dating.”

“Well, clearly, I’m too amazing for Alex not to want to show me off,” Maggie smiled while Alex rolled her eyes, while also thinking that Maggie was right. “Okay, here’s your stop, buddy.”

Winn unbuckled his seatbelt, and leaned forward to put his head between Alex and Maggie’s seats and said quickly, “I know we don’t say stuff like this when there isn’t something awful happening, but I love you both and I’m happy we’re friends, okay, bye.” With that, Winn kissed them both on the side of their heads and got out of the car. 

Maggie and Alex sat there for a moment before laughing quietly and shaking their heads. “What a nerd,” Alex said as Maggie headed back towards their apartment.

“Oh that’s rich, Danvers. You calling someone a nerd.” 

“Hey, it takes one to know one.”

“You’re right about that,” Maggie said, pulling up to a stop sign. “Come here,” she said, pulling Alex into a kiss. It was the sort of kiss that even though it was quick, it felt full of promise, promises of what they would be doing later that night, promises of what they would be doing for the rest of their lives. 

“That reminds me,” Alex said pulling back, “Will you marry me?”

“Not yet,” Maggie responded as usual. 

It had become a game with them even since the first time Alex had asked after defeating the Daxamites. Maggie was thrilled at knowing that one day, she would marry the beautiful, smart, wonderful woman next to her, but she also wanted to wait, wanted to have a few more firsts with Alex before saying yes. So she had said, “Not yet.” Alex would go on to ask her every day. Some days, she would plan out a speech, as if it was the first time all over again. Some days, she would send Maggie flowers at the precinct with a card. Some days she would text Maggie, asking her to pick up milk and for her hand in marriage. And every time, Maggie would respond with, “Not yet.”

“So,” Maggie said, “What was that weird moment between you and Kara earlier? When you were telling Kara to have lunch with Lena but then said ‘no’ and gave her a look and she said ‘I know.’”

“You are a really good detective.” 

“I know. So what’s the deal?”

“I made her promise me that she wouldn’t make a move on Lena until I said it was okay.”

“Huh?” 

“What?”

“Why not?”

“Look, Lena would marry Kara today if that’s what Kara wanted. But she’s twisted herself up so much that she’ll never do anything if it means risking ever losing Kara. And Kara needs to be sure. She thinks she loves Lena, but for them to have a chance, she needs to be sure about how she feels. She needs to be sure enough for the both of them. But if she’s too focused on whether or not to act on her feelings, she’s not going to focus on what her feelings actually are. So instead, I made myself a roadblock for her. Now she can just focus on figuring out that she’s madly in love with Lena, while waiting until I give her permission and say go for it.” 

Maggie pulled into a parking space and turned off the engine, while turning this plan over in her mind. Finally, she said, “That’s either really smart or really dumb. How long do you plan on waiting before giving Kara permission?”

Alex grinned devilishly, “Oh, I’m never giving Kara permission.” 

“What?!” Maggie practically shrieked. “All this planning, and you’re not going to let them be together?!” 

Alex laughed, getting exactly the reaction she had wanted. “Kara will only be ready to be with Lena when she doesn’t care whether I say it’s okay or not.”

Maggie laughed and they both got out of the car. Maggie hurried around and closed Alex’s door for her before grabbing her by her hips. “I’m glad you use your powers for good and not evil,” Maggie said pushing Alex back against the car, and kissing her deeply.

….

After everyone had left, Kara didn’t know what to do. She knew she needed to make plans with Lena, but she couldn’t decide how to do it. She had written and erased about 50 different texts, some simple, some trying to be funny. Then she thought she should call the CEO, her finger hovering over the call button. Finally, Kara knew exactly what she should do.

….

Even though she had given her employees the day off and had gotten a good day buzz going with Alex, Lena was still at work. Most of her days were spent in meetings and replying to emails, so she came to enjoy working at night, looking over reports and lab findings. Papers never doubted her, reports never said she was too young. She was just beginning to think about heading up to her penthouse when she heard a familiar tapping on her window. 

Lena smiled to herself. Her thoughts all day had never been far from Kara, but she didn’t indulge herself to think that the superhero would come to see her. She stood up from her desk and walked barefoot to the door, not bothering to put on her heels again.

She opened the door and smiled even brighter. Kara smiled back.

“Hi.”

“Hi.”


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading, comments, and kudos!

“Hi.”

Kara moved in to wrap her arms around Lena, taking the brunette into her arms as if it had been weeks, months since they had seen each other. 

“I missed you,” Kara said, breathing in Lena’s scent. Lena loved the feeling of being this close to Kara; she wasn’t sure when their friendship had become so tactile but Kara was the only person whose touch never made Lena flinch just a little. 

“I missed you too,” Lena said, placing her head in the crook of Kara’s neck, “even though it hasn’t been that long. Not really.” 

“It feels like it’s been forever,” Kara said, happy that Lena couldn’t see her blush. 

“I know,” Lena said, regretfully pulling away from Kara’s arms. Lena wanted to look at her, to take her in entirely. Supergirl was radiant in her suit, evoking a charisma and confidence that Kara Danvers shared, but most people overlooked in her. Lena could see all of Kara standing before her: the reporter and the superhero, the alien, her best friend. Who in their right mind would risk losing her over something as foolish as romance? 

Kara watched Lena look at her – she had worried that when Lena learned her secret identity that their relationship would change, she wouldn’t be just Kara anymore. Kara could see in Lena’s eyes that her fears were unfounded – she felt more herself than ever. “Lena?” Kara said, taking the CEO’s hands in her own. 

“Yeah?” 

“I’m sorry. I should have told you about Supergirl sooner. I should have been the one to tell you. Although maybe it was better this way.” 

“Why’s that?” They both were whispering this conversation, even though they were alone. Perhaps it was the mood of the conversation, or the time of night, or simply a subconscious excuse to stand a little too close, but neither wanted to speak any louder. 

“You really made a good impression on Alex. In fact, I think I might have some competition as the president of the Lena Luthor fan club.” 

“Well, a little healthy competition never hurt anyone,” Lena joked, trying and failing to hide her smile. She had wondered all day whether she had succeeded in making a good impression on Kara’s sister, worried that she had revealed too much about herself. “I liked talking to her today – I can see why you love her so much.” 

“That’s funny, she said the same thing about you,” Kara replied lovingly, before launching into what she had been planning to say since she arrived on the L Corp balcony. “Lena, I know we have a lot to talk about, but it’s late and it’s been a long day for both of us, so will you…please, let me take you home. With me. To my place. And we can sleep and I’ll wake up at whatever ungodly hour you want and we can talk and then I’ll take you to work and I’ll bring you lunch and we can talk more…”

“Kara,” Lena interrupted, “I don’t have work tomorrow. I’m sorry, I know I said I’d use this quarter’s skip day for us to go to the beach, but your sister showed up and said you were sick so I closed down L Corp for the weekend. I didn’t know what to do – you don’t get sick.” 

“You closed down L Corp for me?” Kara said in wonderment. Kara had come to learn that Lena didn’t show love the way most of the other people in her life did. Most people thought that Lena’s most valuable resources were monetary – she was a billionaire and CEO, she could buy and sell most of National City without flinching. But Kara had learned that Lena’s most valuable resource was her time – she lived in the L Corp building to save precious minutes of travel time, she kept a rigorous schedule, she slept exactly 6.5 hours a night. So Kara already knew that Lena planning on spending a day off with her at the beach was as big a sign of love as any, but for her to close her business on a whim, Kara thought, might be the most romantic thing anyone had ever done for her.

“Of course I did. You know I’d do anything for you. Especially after you tried kale for me,” Lena looked down at their hands to avoid looking into Kara’s eyes. She knew that if she looked into those blue eyes, Kara would be able to see how Lena longed for her. “So,” Lena said, trying to change the topic back, “I won’t make you wake up early, but we don’t have to go across town to your place. The guest room upstairs is yours already and I don’t want to bother Jerome this late.”

“I don’t want your driver to take you to my place, I want to fly you there,” Kara responded, taking a deep breath before continuing, “the truth is, I always thought of taking you flying as my reward for finally telling you about Supergirl.” Kara and Lena both tacitly acknowledged in this conversation that a shift had occurred in their relationship – they were finally being honest with each other. Honest in a way they hadn’t been before. They agreed without ever saying it aloud that they would tell each other every thing, every part of their histories, every want, like, desire, fear, every feeling they had they would share. Finally they could say everything…except for the one thing they really wanted to say to each other. 

“I can only see two problems with that plan – one, technically you didn’t tell me about Supergirl so Alex should be the one getting a reward; and two, you know I hate flying.” 

“Okay, counterpoints: one, Alex has realized how amazing you are and wants to spend more time with you which is reward enough, and two, you won’t hate flying with me.” Lena was amused by the mix of confidence and cockiness displayed on Kara’s face at this assertion. 

“You promise me it’ll be safe?” Lena asked. It was a leading question and they both knew it, but didn’t care. 

“I promise I’ll always keep you safe, Lena.” 

“And you’ll always be my hero, Kara,” Lena replied, pulling Kara out to the balcony and wrapping her arms around Kara’s neck. Kara took that as an invitation to literally sweep Lena off of her feet. 

“I’m so glad you know,” Kara said, as though she couldn’t help herself, “Lying to you was the worst.” Kara’s feet left the ground and Lena gasped. Of course, she had flown with Kara before, but those times were because she was about to be blown up or was falling to her death – she hadn’t had the opportunity to really appreciate the experience. But this, being held in her best friend’s arms, traveling through the night’s sky, it was exhilarating. 

All too soon they were landing gently in Kara’s apartment. Kara begrudgingly puts Lena down, already missing the warmth from having Lena pressed up against her. Both women are slightly breathless despite the fact that neither exerted much energy on the short flight. Realizing that her arms were still around Kara’s neck, that they were standing much too close, Lena blurted out the first thing she thought of. 

“I forgot my purse!”

Kara laughed and in less time than Lena had to mentally beat herself up for saying something so pedestrian, the Kryptonian had flown to LCorp and back again. “Okay, I’ve got your purse and laptop bag, I grabbed your tablet too and all the chargers, so you’ll able to respond to emails and do work tomorrow even though it’s your day off.” 

“My hero,” Lena sighed, effecting a breathless damsel in distress. 

Wordlessly, they shifted into their nighttime routine, with Kara pulling out an oversized tshirt for Lena to wear then moving into the bathroom to brush her teeth while Lena changed. Over the course of the last few months, they had fallen into a pattern of spending the night together. It started out as once every couple weeks, then once a week, and for the past couple of weeks, it felt like it was almost every other day. Weeknights were always spent at Lena’s, while weekends were spent at Kara’s. “I just sleep better when you’re close to me,” Lena remembered Kara saying. She had assumed that Kara just liked having another person close at night. With Mon-El gone, Kara needed any body to cuddle, so anybody would do. 

As they got into Kara’s bed, Lena could see concern on Kara’s face – there wasn’t yet the full crinkle between her eyebrows, but it was getting there. 

“What’s wrong, Kara?”

“Can we cuddle? Please, it’s just all too much tonight.”

“Of course, but what’s too much?” 

Kara removed her glasses, turned out the light, and then moved to wrap herself around Lena’s body. Lena could feel the arm around her waist pull her closer as Kara’s legs intertwined with hers.

“When I’m trying to sleep, sometimes it’s hard to block out all the noise. So instead I just pick out someone’s heartbeat to listen to. For the longest time, I’d listen for Alex. For awhile I’d switch between Cat Grant and James. And now I pretty much only listen for you because your heartbeat is beautiful. Is that weird?” 

“It’s not weird. What about Mon-El’s heartbeat? Did you listen to his?” Lena knew that comparing herself to Kara’s ex-boyfriend who was no longer in the galaxy was a fool’s errand, but in this instance, she just couldn’t help herself.

“No, I got in the habit of listening to yours before he and I got together, so I never needed to listen for him.”

“How long have you been listening to my heartbeat, Kara?”

“Ever since you stopped the Medusa virus. It kind of started because I was afraid your mother would retaliate and I figured I could tell if you were in trouble, but then…”

“Then…?”

“Listening to everyone else is like just listening to the percussion. You’re the whole symphony, Lena.” Kara knew that saying things like this wasn’t in the usual platonic friend banter, but she didn’t care if it meant showing the Luthor how incredible and loved she was. Maybe it would make Lena more open to the new friends she didn’t yet know she would be making. This was flirting with a purpose, Kara reasoned, even if it was just excuse to toe the line of the promise she made to Alex not to tell Lena her true feelings.

Lena shifted herself to eliminate any shred of distance between herself and Kara. “Well, I said it before, you have a way with words.”

“Thank you,” Kara whispered.

“Go to sleep, Supergirl,” Lena whispered back. 

In their final moments before drifting off to sleep completely, Lena and Kara had similar, yet very different, thoughts.

“Even though we’ll never date, this is good enough,” Lena thought.

“Even though we’re not dating, but this is good enough…for now,” Kara thought.


End file.
